


Instincts

by Doctor_Discord



Series: The Ego Manor [113]
Category: Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Arguments, Bim and Ed Need to Cool It, Defensiveness, Eric is Not Having a Good Time, Fighting, Past Abuse, Past Child Abuse, Petty Squables, instincts, poor eric
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-02
Updated: 2019-10-02
Packaged: 2020-11-01 13:40:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,254
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20816060
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Doctor_Discord/pseuds/Doctor_Discord
Summary: Bim and Ed are fighting -again- and Eric has an instinctual reaction that has them both filling with concern.





	Instincts

Eric hummed to himself, smiling happily, as he laid on the floor of the living area, petting Midnight and laying out a trail of treats for her to follow (bits of apple, he discovered, were her favorite). She was less skittish than when he first brought her home, but she still wasn’t exactly a fan of anyone touching her other than Eric. Well, and Silver. She _loved _Silver, and he in turn showered her with affection whenever he got the chance.

Eric laughed, face crinkling up, when Midnight hopped over to him, sniffing at his face with her nose practically touch his own. She hesitated for a moment, her whiskers tickling Eric’s face, then licked his nose and hopped away again, clicking her teeth happily.

He would’ve been content to lay there and play with his bunny all day, but then the shouting started.

He tensed, and both he and Midnight lifted their heads, Midnight’s ears twitching. The shouting grew closer, and it became _readily _apparent it was an argument between Bim and Ed, the two of them spitting venom back and forth as they rounded the corner into the living area.

“Bim, keep your fuckin’ glittery bullshit confined to your own room, dammit! I don’t need to wake up lookin’ like a fuckin’ _fairy _every mornin’!”

“Well _excuse _me, princess, we all have fashion choices! And I could go without smelling your Godawful cologne every five minutes! At least _I _have the decency to keep my damn mouth _shut!_”

Ed scoffed, crossing his arms. “At least _I _don’t get blood everywhere every couple of nights!”

Bim narrowed his eyes. “Hey, I clean up! There’s a reason I have showers at my studio, that’s a Goddamn _lie!_ And are you _really _getting on me for what I do in my spare time?! You sell _children_, Ed!”

“I _guarantee _what _I _do is more _humane _than what _you _do!”

Bim and Ed continued to fight bitterly, hissing words and gesturing wildly. Eric stood slowly, heart in his throat and eyes wide. Gently placing Midnight on the couch and running a hand soothingly down her back once, he moved tentatively toward the fighting pair. “Guys, um –” His small voice was easily drowned out by their shouting, and he shrank. “Guys, _please_ stop fighting, I –”

He cut himself of with a squeak as the two simultaneously shut up, still glaring daggers at each other and breathing hard. Ed was the one who broke the sudden tense, thick silence, flipping Bim off in the process. “_He’s _the one who started it!”

Bim’s jaw dropped, visibly outraged with his hands on his hips. “Bitch _please! _You’re the one who confronted _me!_”

Ed raised an eyebrow. “You started it by throwin’ your _glitter _everywhere!”

Eric made another distressed noise, slipping between the two and attempting to break them apart as they picked up their argument right where they left off. He could hear Midnight beginning the freak out on the couch, whining and squealing, and his own head was beginning to hurt, his stomach was turning – “Guys, p-please, don’t fight! You –”

Bim rolled his eyes, raising a hand to – presumably – move Eric out of the way, but Eric didn’t let him get that far. His eyes shot wide, and he dropped to the floor between them, arms covering the back of his head. Everything went silent, and all Eric could hear were his own shuddering breaths and his pulsing pounding in his ears.

He flinched, curling into a tighter ball, when he felt someone lay a gently hand on his back, trying desperately not to cry, and then Bim was speaking soothingly in his ear. “…Eric, did…did you think…I was going to hit you?”

Eric flinched again, curling tighter. “…No. Maybe, I don’t know! I just – I-I-I saw your hand, and I –”

He made a noise that was half squeak, half sob, and Bim rubbed his back soothingly. “Eric, I’m not gonna hurt you. I am _never _going to hit you –”

“– Neither of us are,” Ed cut in.

“Right. Neither of us are ever going to hurt you. And none of the others will, either. You’re safe here, kid.”

Eric uncurled slightly, lifting his head but refusing to look either of them in the eye. “Um…” He slinked back to the couch, smiling a little when Midnight instantly climbed into his lap, calming immediately as he ran a hand down her back. Ed and Bim came to sit on either side of him, and he shrunk again, devoting the majority of his attention to the bunny currently trying to burrow under his shirt. “I-I-I know…that I’m safe. It’s just…instinct.”

Ed wrapped an arm around his shoulders, pulling him closer, and Eric willingly let his head rest on Ed’s own shoulder. “Trust us, kid, that fact breaks our hearts. I know how many nightmares you have. Though, we’re slowly rewritin’ some of those instincts. They’re not nearly as bad as when you first arrived in this house.”

Bim placed a hand on his knee, smiling softly. “He’s right. You’re not as anxious, you’re more relaxed, you laugh and smile more. We’re not expecting all that…_stuff _you went through to vanish in a puff of smoke, but progress is progress, no matter how slow it is.”

Eric nodded shakily. “Thanks. I –” He cut himself off with a laugh, and Ed snorted, when Midnight finally managed to worm her way beneath Eric’s shirt, pressed flush against his stomach. Eric raised an eyebrow, lifting his shirt a little, revealing the black, mischievous little bunny. Midnight glanced up at him, nose twitching, them raised herself onto her back legs, resting her front against Eric’s chest and sticking her head back beneath his shirt, teeth audibly grinding together in what Eric knew (after a _lot _of research) was the equivalent of a contented hum.

He laughed again, glancing at the other two, and Bim chuckled, shaking his head fondly. “All that being said…We have a part to play. I’ll try not to raise my hands like that again. At least, not without fair warning. I don’t…I don’t want to startle you like that again.”

Eric lowered his shirt, covering Midnight completely once more (much to her delight, if the clicking teeth were anything to go by). “…Thanks. Sincerely. But, it would be better if guys just…didn’t fight?”

He ducked his head as Bim and Ed glanced at each other. Ed cleared his throat. “We’ll work on that, but, as upsettin’ as it may be, you can’t expect _complete _peace between us all. We vary too much for that to be even a fleetin’ possibility. Plus, he’s a glittery bastard with poor boundaries.”

Bim huffed. “And you’re a Southern prick with non-existent morals!”

“Cannibal.”

“_Child-trafficker!_”

Their words, despite the connotations, held none of the same bite they did previously, and Eric giggled as they devolved to just sticking their tongues out and flipping each other off childishly. He could feel Midnight scrambling up his body, him subtly supporting her as she went, and she poked her head out of his shirt collar. He petted her head, bowing his head so she could sniff at him again. “…You guys are the best. Really.”

Bim grinned, running a hand through his hair before flicking the flecks glitter that came away at Ed. “I do try.”

Ed smacked him on the head with his hat. “_Bastard!_”

“_Ha! _Jokes on you, now you got glitter on your hat!”

“_Oh Goddammit!_”

Eric just laughed.

**Author's Note:**

> _Aren't Eric and Midnight just such cuties look at them what beans_  
I hope you guys liked this! Sunday is a real fun one! With some lovely Darkstache! _Oh actually BOTH stories next week are super fun oh my God -_
> 
> Tumblr: doctordiscord123.tumblr.com


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